Money hungry: The ATM continued to pay out for five hours until the fault was reported to the Nationwide at 4pm

Shan Cliff, 21, said: 'Most people have taken out hundreds of pounds. No one's going to turn down free money. I don't know whether it will show in our accounts but it's their mistake not ours.'

A 33-year-old man who pocketed an extra £150 said: 'My friend texted me about 2pm. I couldn't believe it. You had to wait a while because people were putting their cards in five and six times.

''The banks have had enough off us so it's good to get a little back.'

But the Nationwide Building Society failed to see the justice. The ATM had been incorrectly filled, it said.

'Some people used the machine to take out money which wasn't rightly theirs, which is very disappointing. It's also disappointing no one informed us there was a fault for such a long time.'

People in on the scam smile and laugh as they wait patiently for their hand-out. But one man doesn't want to be identified

Customers could be ordered to pay it back but as the withdrawals will have been spread around several banks, that prospect is thought to be unlikely.

Nationwide may demand that the contractor blamed for wrongly filling the machine foots the bill instead.

This week outside Sainsbury's supermarket in Welshpool, Mid Wales, shoppers queued late into the night, some in their pyjamas, to take advantage of another cash machine issuing double the funds requested.

Sainsbury's Bank said: 'The customers have clearly experienced a little New Year luck. We will not be looking to recoup the cash.'